{"title":"Alex Christofi","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAlex Christofi\u003c\/strong\u003e explores the intricate connections between history, literature, and personal narrative with a distinctive voice. His works often weave together biographical insight and historical context, offering readers a profound reflection on the lives and legacies of notable figures.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eFrom the evocative storytelling in \u003cem\u003eDostoevsky in Love\u003c\/em\u003e to the richly layered narrative of \u003cem\u003eCypria\u003c\/em\u003e, Christofi's books invite contemplation on memory, identity, and the enduring impact of the past on the present.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"dostoevsky-in-love-by-alex-christofi-9781399404860","title":"Dostoevsky in Love","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e'A daring and mesmerizing twist on the art of biography' – Douglas Smith, author of Rasputin: The Biography\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\n\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e'Anyone who loves Dostoevsky's novels will be fascinated by this book' – Sue Prideaux, author of I Am Dynamite! A Life of Friedrich Nietzsche\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eDostoevsky’s life was marked by brilliance and brutality. Sentenced to death as a young revolutionary, he survived mock execution and Siberian exile to live through a time of seismic change in Russia, eventually being accepted into the Tsar’s inner circle. He had three great love affairs, each overshadowed by debilitating epilepsy and addiction to gambling. Somehow, amidst all this, he found time to write short stories, journalism and novels such as \u003ci\u003eCrime and Punishment\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Idiot\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eThe Brothers Karamazov\u003c\/i\u003e, works now recognised as among the finest ever written.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn \u003ci\u003eDostoevsky in Love\u003c\/i\u003e, Alex Christofi weaves carefully chosen excerpts of the author’s work with the historical context to form an illuminating and often surprising whole. The result is a novelistic life that immerses the reader in a grand vista of Dostoevsky’s world: from the Siberian prison camp to the gambling halls of Europe; from the dank prison cells of the Tsar’s fortress to the refined salons of St Petersburg. Along the way, Christofi relates the stories of the three women whose lives were so deeply intertwined with Dostoevsky’s: the consumptive widow Maria; the impetuous Polina who had visions of assassinating the Tsar; and the faithful stenographer Anna, who did so much to secure his literary legacy.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eReading between the lines of his fiction, Christofi reconstructs the memoir Dostoevsky might have written had life – and literary stardom – not intervened. He gives us a new portrait of the artist as never before seen: a shy but devoted lover, an empathetic friend of the people, a loyal brother and friend, and a writer able to penetrate to the very depths of the human soul.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Allen \u0026 Unwin","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46825667854572,"sku":"9781399404860","price":84.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/6416663482686.jpg?v=1758108763"},{"product_id":"cypria-by-alex-christofi-9781399401890","title":"Cypria","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA WATERSTONES BOOK OF THE YEAR 2024\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\"A brilliant exploration of Cyprus’s long history of cultural resilience. Superbly composed.\" -- Guardian\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\"Poetic...Compelling\" -- New Statesman\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eOne of \u003cem\u003eNational Geographic\u003c\/em\u003e's Summer Reads 2024\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThink of a place where you can stand at the intersection of Christian and Arab cultures, at the crossroads of the British, Ottoman, Byzantine, Roman and Egyptian empires; a place marked by the struggle between fascism and communism and where the capital city is divided in half as a result of bloody conflict; where the ancient olive trees of Homer's time exist alongside the undersea cables which link up the world's internet.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn \u003cem\u003eCypria\u003c\/em\u003e, named after a lost Cypriot epic which was the prequel to \u003cem\u003eThe Odyssey\u003c\/em\u003e, British Cypriot writer Alex Christofi writes a deeply personal, lyrical history of the island of Cyprus, from the era of goddesses and mythical beasts to the present day.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThis sprawling, evocative and poetic book begins with the legend of the cyclops and the storytelling at the heart of the Mediterranean culture. Christofi travels to salt lakes, crusader castles, mosques and the eerie town deserted at the start of the 1974 war. He retells the particularly bloody history of Cyprus during the twentieth century and considers his own identity as traveler and returner, as Odysseus was.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWritten in sensitive, witty and beautifully rendered prose, with a novelist's flair and eye for detail, \u003cem\u003eCypria\u003c\/em\u003e combines the political, cultural and geographical history of Cyprus with reflections on time, place and belonging.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Allen \u0026 Unwin","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46848891158764,"sku":"9781399401890","price":39.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/6386963482686.jpg?v=1759002804"},{"product_id":"cypria-by-alex-christofi-9781399401906","title":"Cypria","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSHORTLISTED FOR THE ANGLO-HELLENIC LEAGUE RUNCIMAN AWARD 2025\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\"A brilliant exploration of Cyprus’s long history of cultural resilience. Superbly composed.\" -- Guardian\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eOne of \u003ci\u003eNational Geographic\u003c\/i\u003e's Summer Reads 2024\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThink of a place where you can stand at the intersection of Christian and Arab cultures, at the crossroads of the British, Ottoman, Byzantine, Roman and Egyptian empires; a place marked by the struggle between fascism and communism and where the capital city is divided in half as a result of bloody conflict; where the ancient olive trees of Homer's time exist alongside the undersea cables which link up the world's internet.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn \u003ci\u003eCypria\u003c\/i\u003e, named after a lost Cypriot epic which was the prequel to \u003ci\u003eThe Odyssey\u003c\/i\u003e, British Cypriot writer Alex Christofi writes a deeply personal, lyrical history of the island of Cyprus, from the era of goddesses and mythical beasts to the present day.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThis sprawling, evocative and poetic book begins with the legend of the cyclops and the storytelling at the heart of the Mediterranean culture. Christofi travels to salt lakes, crusader castles, mosques and the eerie town deserted at the start of the 1974 war. He retells the particularly bloody history of Cyprus during the twentieth century and considers his own identity as traveller and returner, as Odysseus was.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWritten in sensitive, witty and beautifully rendered prose, with a novelist's flair and eye for detail, \u003ci\u003eCypria\u003c\/i\u003e combines the political, cultural and geographical history of Cyprus with reflections on time, place and belonging.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Allen \u0026 Unwin","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48241064214764,"sku":"9781399401906","price":26.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/d7e4dd36068ace5abd6c52f1dfacf279.jpg?v=1788122632"}],"url":"https:\/\/bookhero.live\/collections\/alex-christofi.oembed","provider":"Book Hero","version":"1.0","type":"link"}